Rick Patrick
rick@greenepublishing.com
Facing any deadly disease can easily make anyone feel alone. The debilitating treatments, uncertainty about the future and the natural "Why me?" questions that can understandably enter into anyone's mind can give even the strongest of people a sense of loneliness. For former Madison County resident and nurse, Ashley Jackson Rutherford, fighting stage three breast cancer is a battle that is not being fought alone. Rutherford quickly acknowledges the help she has received in the form of doctors, nurses and staff from Tallahassee Memorial Cancer Center. "God has literally carried me through this part of my journey and will continue on to the next," said Rutherford. "But I'm so incredibly thankful for every single nurse [and] person that I've had the pleasure of meeting throughout this season of life. They are really some incredible individuals that have turned a bad day completely upside down or made me laugh when I didn't know how much I needed it. I will forever be grateful for them!"
Rutherford, 30, was diagnosed in September of 2020 and began aggressive chemotherapy treatments right away. She has just recently completed a regimen that consisted of six eight-hour treatments, every two weeks. Fortunately, Rutherford has responded positively to the treatments and she feels that the cancer has minimized somewhat. She has been in consultation with Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center, in Jacksonville. In the near future, she will have surgery there in order to remove more of the cancer. From that point, she will have a year of further, less aggressive chemotherapy treatments, as well as radiation therapy in order to completely rid her body of cancer. "We're hopeful," said Ashley's husband, Lucas, originally from Madison. "They have made some great advancements in the treatment of breast cancer. It will still be a long road ahead, but we are hopeful."
Naturally, all this treatment comes at a very high price for the family, both emotionally and economically. A GoFundMe account has been set up for the family with the "hashtag" #NoOneFightsAlone. To make a contribution to the GoFundMe account to help the Rutherford family, simply go to https://gofund.me/6be97149 and donate.
Ashley's husband, Lucas Rutherford is the son of Gene and Teresa Rutherford, of Madison. The couple has two children: Amelia, age one and Addie, age four.